Overview
- A viral video recorded at the Bayers Lake Costco on July 4 shows a man yelling racist, Islamophobic threats at two Muslim women wearing hijabs and striking the person filming.
- The videographer, Fayez Hamam, reported the assault to 911 and said he was hit during the roughly 15-to-20-minute incident that drew widespread public attention.
- Halifax Regional Police’s Hate Crime Unit released images and asked the public for help identifying the suspect, and officials thanked members of the community who came forward.
- Police, with RCMP assistance, arrested 37-year-old Randall Byron Publicover at a Port Dufferin residence after he allegedly brandished a weapon and officers deployed a conductive energy weapon; paramedics treated and cleared him at the scene.
- Publicover faces 10 charges including public incitement of hatred, assault, four counts of uttering threats, two counts of mischief, resisting a peace officer and possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, the investigation remains active, and the National Council of Canadian Muslims urged a national Islamophobia strategy.